Powering Up at The Classic Cup

by Chris Becicka

So there I was among the rich, the (Kansas City) famous and powerful, and some wannabees, too. I was having breakfast on a Thursday (busiest day next to Friday) at The Classic Cup on the Plaza with the most influential real estate attorney in town and the most significant manufacturing engineer in my life and a mayoral candidate to my left, eight noteworthy women planning a major event to my right, and a room full of white shirts (and ties, no less) and well dressed and coiffed women, all clearly intent on business. There were no babies, no smoking, and, remarkably, no cell phones ringing. Me, I was on assignment the proverbial Power Breakfast.

No one, of course, would call it that except hack writers.  No one would certainly admit to having one, either. I hope. The phrase seems pretty tired, having been around since the 60s, with Washington D.C. probably spawning it and its sister term, power lunch. The dictionary says the term is of American origin, “a working breakfast, especially one at which people of authority or influence (typically in business or politics) can hold discussions in advance of the formal working day and in a relatively informal or neutral setting.”

Breakfast meetings may be more a reflection of not enough time and too much work, but it has many advantages coffee refills are free, you can get in and out in an hour or you can linger if you wish, it’s a cheap date. Plus, there’s all that stuff about how important a hearty breakfast is.

With that in mind, I went for what was clearly not healthy and not even my typical test of a breakfast place: excellent coffee served within two minutes of sitting down and an egg breakfast cooked exactly to order. In my case, that’s eggs over medium, hash browns extra crispy along with bacon, well-done toast with real butter. At the Classic Cup, that’s called the Iowa Country Breakfast ($6.95) and grilled ham is also possible, the browns are home fries, and the toast is a biscuit and the attorney snarfed it down, pronouncing it excellent, even though he usually doesn’t eat breakfast and thinks the term “power breakfast” is inherently funny.

So, I chose the famous buttermilk griddlecakes. I don’t usually order pancakes because I really don’t like them very much—too doughy. But these said famous. If something else had said powerful, I’d have been in trouble. But they were, to my surprise, excellent—light, fluffy as promised.  The bacon was thick cut, slightly smoky, crispy and superb.  I added an egg (ah, nutrition) and it was exactly over medium. Real butter; I didn’t ask for the 100% maple or the sugar-free syrup.

The engineer went for the biscuits and gravy ($5.95) of which he is particularly fond. As he made a monumental effort at his huge plateful, he promised not to close-talk to anyone today, including me, as the garlic might make us swoon.

The breakfast menu at the Classic Cup is quite large 21 items ranging from eggs benedict to lox and bagel

platter, a pork tenderloin sandwich, breakfast quesadilla, six three egg omelets with the potatoes and biscuit. You can eat healthy here there’s bran oatmeal, assorted fruits, cereals, berries, even a low carb veggie scramble if you’ve stuck to that.

What I really wanted, however, was the bread pudding.  The description was enticing: “Try our famous dessert for breakfast. We use our famous braided bread with a touch of raisin and pecan, surround it with caramel sauce and fresh fruit, and top it with whipped cream.” Just $5.50 and I could intake all my daily calories from one smallish bowl.

By 9:30 the place had pretty much cleared out and the power moguls went on to doing whatever it is they do.  Waiting for their power lunch no doubt.